Botanical classification/cultivar designation: Calibrachoa sp. cultivar Wescaice.
The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Calibrachoa plant, botanically known as Calibrachoa sp., and hereinafter referred to by the name xe2x80x98Wescaicexe2x80x99.
The new Calibrachoa is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Sxc3xcdlohn, Germany. The objective of the program is to create new Calibrachoa cultivars with compact and cascading growth habit, freely branching habit and attractive flower colors.
The new Calibrachoa originated from a cross-pollination made by the Inventor during 2000 of a proprietary selection of Calibrachoa identified as code number 00P108, not patented, as the female, or seed, parent with a proprietary selection of Calibrachoa identified as code number 00P150, not patented, as the male, or pollen, parent. The new Calibrachoa was selected by the Inventor in 2000 in a controlled environment in Sxc3xcdlohn, Germany from within the progeny resulting from the cross-pollination.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal cuttings taken in a controlled environment in Sxc3xcdlohn, Germany since 2000, has shown that the unique features of this new Calibrachoa are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.
Plants of the cultivar Wescaice have not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, light intensity and daylength without, however, any variance in genotype.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Wescaicexe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish xe2x80x98Wescaicexe2x80x99 as a new and distinct cultivar of Calibrachoa:
1. Cascading, roughly spherical plant habit.
2. Branches with tightly spaced internodes.
3. Large ovate-shaped leaves.
4. Freely flowering habit.
5. Uniform flower size.
6. Flowers that are light blue in color.
Plants of the new Calibrachoa produce flowers that are more open in shape and different in color than plants of the female parent. Also, plants of the new Calibrachoa have flowers that remain open under low light levels. Plants of the new Calibrachoa have flowers that are a different color than plants of the male parent. Plants of the new Calibrachoa also have thicker branches and larger leaves than plants of the male parent.
Plants of the cultivar Wescaice can be compared to plants of the Calibrachoa cultivar Wesviolet, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 12,584. However in side-by-side comparisons conducted in Sxc3xcdlohn, Germany, plants of the new Calibrachoa and the cultivar Wesviolet, differed in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Calibrachoa had larger and more rounded leaves than plants of the cultivar Wesviolet.
2. Plants of the new Calibrachoa had wider sepals and longer peduncles than plants of the cultivar Wesviolet.
3. Plants of the new Calibrachoa produced larger flowers than plants of the cultivar Wesviolet.
4. Plants of the new Calibrachoa and the cultivar Wesviolet differed in flower color.
Plants of the cultivar Wescaice can also be compared to plants of the Calibrachoa cultivar Carillon Blue, not patented. However in side-by-side comparisons conducted in Sxc3xcdlohn, Germany, plants of the new Calibrachoa and the cultivar Carillon Blue, differed in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Calibrachoa had more rounded leaves than plants of the cultivar Carillon Blue.
2. Plants of the new Calibrachoa had shorter internodes than plants of the cultivar Carillon Blue.
3. Plants of the new Calibrachoa produced larger flowers than plants of the cultivar Carillon Blue.
4. Plants of the new Calibrachoa and the cultivar Carillon Blue differed in flower color.
5. Plants of the new Calibrachoa had broader sepals than plants of the cultivar Carillon Blue.